FOR Scarborough chiropodist Charles White, writing the authorised biography of Little Richard snowballed from a part-time project to take over his life. So much so, he has just written his third version, updating his 1984 and 1993 editions.

For North Deighton freelance music writer Mark Sturdy - born in 1978 a few weeks before Pulp were first formed - Jarvis Cocker's Sheffield band could be the only choice for his first book. First hooked on Pulp's music at 16, he spent six years researching Truth & Beauty.

For Deptford musician, writer and former bank clerk Mark Perry, punk rock will never die. When creating the original punk fanzine, Sniffin' Glue, he typed a suitably provocative message on the cover of the first issue in July 1976; price 15p. In bold type it read: "This thing is not meant to be read... it's for soaking in glue and sniffin'".

Not meant to be read? Perry's fanzine - it ran for only a year - has become as much a part of punk history as the Sex Pistols' television interview with Bill Grundy or Pennie Smith's photos of The Clash. Now all the editions have been compiled by Perry in The Essential Punk Accessory; price £20.

Each book is marked by the author's desire to break new ground. White's updated book was the first biography of one of the great legends of rock'n'roll; Sturdy's study of Pulp is the first comprehensive overview of their career from schoolboy promise to semi-retirement; Perry invented the do-it-yourself rock fanzine.

White - alias the effervescent rock'n'roll presenter Dr Rock of BBC Radio York - had set up the first rock'n'roll course in the world at East Coast College, Scarborough, in 1978.

"After doing that I was asked to review rock books on the Echoes radio show and I noticed that there were a couple of hundred books on the Stones and the Beatles, but there was nothing in print on Little Richard and his amazing contribution to 20th-century music. I determined to put this injustice right," he says.

Through his radio work, White interviewed Little Richard a couple of times in the 1960s, but it was not until his research led him to America that he finally met the man himself at the initiation of producer Bumps Blackwell. "When Bumps showed him this picture of me, Little Richard said 'God has sent Dr Rock to write my life story'."

Whereupon the good doctor moved up from biographer to official biographer. "It was quite a thing going from treating people for verrucas in old people's homes in Scarborough to meeting Little Richard... being invited to his 50th birthday party and being introduced to Muhammad Ali by him. I nearly dropped through the floor!"

He believes he could not have chosen a better subject. "What makes a good rock book is when the star is not one of those narcissistic types with no talent backed up by gimmickry. Little Richard is one of the most interesting men on the planet," says White. "He's larger than life, he learnt the hard way; he broke racial prejudices and above all he had a voice that made Pavarotti sound like a squeaky voice."

Mark Sturdy was similarly convinced that Pulp were ideal subject matter. "I decided to write a book about Pulp firstly because they were my favourite band, and secondly because they seemed to be the perfect subject for a biography. They have a long, strange history, and one that it seemed hadn't been properly documented before," he says.

By contrast with White and his direct contact with Little Richard, Sturdy had access only to drummer Nick Banks of Pulp's present line-up.

"On the other hand, I've been lucky enough to interview around 30 members, ex-members and associates of Pulp, all of whom have added a great deal to the book. The vast majority of them hadn't been interviewed before, so it was great to get some fresh angles rather than hearing someone trotting out the same stories we've all heard many times before."

Mark Perry, who still performs with his punk band Alternative TV at 46, retains the healthy disdain for nostalgia shown by punk in the 1970s.

"All the books coming out now on punk are just for the coffee table and have the same old pictures, and the writers weren't there. The only book I rate apart from mine is by Jon Savage and that's because he was there, just like I was there, and if anyone should do a book on punk it should be me!"

The Life And Times Of Little Richard, The Authorised Biography, by Charles White (Omnibus Press, £9.95)

Truth & Beauty: The Story Of Pulp, by Mark Sturdy (Omnibus Press, £14.95)

Sniffin' Glue, The Essential Punk Accessory (Sanctuary Publishing, £20).

Updated: 09:35 Wednesday, September 03, 2003